Shortly after 10:00am on the morning of June 7th, a surfer was fatally struck by a shark while surfing at Salt Beach just south of Kingscliff near Tweed Heads in New South Wales as reported by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
The surfer's name has not been released, but multiple sources report that he is a 60-year-old man from Queensland. The deceased was helped by other surfers to reach the shore, and was alive when he got to the beach.
As of now, the shark species has not been identified, but witnesses told local police it was likely three-meters long. The beach has been cleared and authorities have deployed water and air craft to locate the shark.
Stuart Gonsal, a local surfer from Kingscliff, told ABC that he had just arrived at the beach when he found out about the incident.
"We came down and we hadn't got in the water and police were immediately hauling people in," Mr Gonsal said. "A lot of people were still stuck out the back there. It took a while to get all the people out of the water."
The shark was not identified, and while great white sharks are active in the area, the NSW Department of Primary Industries detected a bull shark in the waters off Kingscliff on Friday evening according to The Guardian.
Beaches between Kingscliff and Cabarita will remain closed for the next 24 hours per local authorities.
Our deepest condolences to the family and friends of the surfer, as well as the Kingscliff community.
Surfer Loses Life To Shark Incident In New South Wales
WSL
Shortly after 10:00am on the morning of June 7th, a surfer was fatally struck by a shark while surfing at Salt Beach just south of Kingscliff near Tweed Heads in New South Wales as reported by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
The surfer's name has not been released, but multiple sources report that he is a 60-year-old man from Queensland. The deceased was helped by other surfers to reach the shore, and was alive when he got to the beach.
As of now, the shark species has not been identified, but witnesses told local police it was likely three-meters long. The beach has been cleared and authorities have deployed water and air craft to locate the shark.
Stuart Gonsal, a local surfer from Kingscliff, told ABC that he had just arrived at the beach when he found out about the incident.
"We came down and we hadn't got in the water and police were immediately hauling people in," Mr Gonsal said. "A lot of people were still stuck out the back there. It took a while to get all the people out of the water."
The shark was not identified, and while great white sharks are active in the area, the NSW Department of Primary Industries detected a bull shark in the waters off Kingscliff on Friday evening according to The Guardian.
Beaches between Kingscliff and Cabarita will remain closed for the next 24 hours per local authorities.
Our deepest condolences to the family and friends of the surfer, as well as the Kingscliff community.
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